Hybrid transmission scheme determination

ABSTRACT

There is provided a method in a network element of a wireless communication network, the method comprising: receiving a service request from a service provider; initiating determination of a transmission scheme for the service request; obtaining multicast capability information on a plurality of terminal devices and network nodes; obtaining distribution information on the plurality of terminal devices; obtaining traffic load information on the network nodes; based on the multicast capability information, the distribution information, and the traffic load information, determining the transmission scheme for the service request, the transmission scheme including at least one unicast transmission and at least one multicast transmission; and indicating one or more unicast transmitting entities about the at least one unicast transmissions and indicating one or more multicast transmitting entities about the at least one multicast transmissions.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to communications.

BACKGROUND

In a communication network, unicast and multicast transmissions may beused to provide services to user equipment (can be referred to asterminal device also). It may be beneficial to provide solutions thatfurther enhance flexibility of use of unicast and multicasttransmissions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

According to an aspect, there is provided the subject matter of theindependent claims. Some embodiments are defined in the dependentclaims.

One or more examples of implementations are set forth in more detail inthe accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features willbe apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

In the following some embodiments will be described with reference tothe attached drawings, in which

FIG. 1 illustrates an example a wireless communication system to whichembodiments of the invention may be applied;

FIG. 2 illustrates a flow diagram according to an embodiment;

FIG. 3 illustrates an example embodiment;

FIGS. 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 illustrate some embodiments; and

FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of an apparatus according to anembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS

The following embodiments are exemplifying. Although the specificationmay refer to “an”, “one”, or “some” embodiment(s) in several locationsof the text, this does not necessarily mean that each reference is madeto the same embodiment(s), or that a particular feature only applies toa single embodiment. Single features of different embodiments may alsobe combined to provide other embodiments.

In the following, different exemplifying embodiments will be describedusing, as an example of an access architecture to which the embodimentsmay be applied, a radio access architecture based on long term evolutionadvanced (LTE Advanced, LTE-A) or new radio (NR, 5G), withoutrestricting the embodiments to such an architecture, however. It isobvious for a person skilled in the art that the embodiments may also beapplied to other kinds of communications networks having suitable meansby adjusting parameters and procedures appropriately. Some examples ofother options for suitable systems are the universal mobiletelecommunications system (UMTS) radio access network (UTRAN orE-UTRAN), long term evolution (LTE, the same as E-UTRA), wireless localarea network (WLAN or WiFi), worldwide interoperability for microwaveaccess (WiMAX), Bluetooth®, personal communications services (PCS),ZigBee®, wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), systems usingultra-wideband (UWB) technology, sensor networks, mobile ad-hoc networks(MANETs) and Internet Protocol multimedia subsystems (IMS) or anycombination thereof.

FIG. 1 depicts examples of simplified system architectures only showingsome elements and functional entities, all being logical units, whoseimplementation may differ from what is shown. The connections shown inFIG. 1 are logical connections; the actual physical connections may bedifferent. It is apparent to a person skilled in the art that the systemtypically comprises also other functions and structures than those shownin FIG. 1.

The embodiments are not, however, restricted to the system given as anexample but a person skilled in the art may apply the solution to othercommunication systems provided with necessary properties.

The example of FIG. 1 shows a part of an exemplifying radio accessnetwork.

FIG. 1 shows user devices 100 and 102 configured to be in a wirelessconnection on one or more communication channels in a cell with anaccess node 104 (such as (e/g)NodeB) providing the cell. The physicallink from a user device to a (e/g)NodeB is called uplink or reverse linkand the physical link from the (e/g)NodeB to the user device is calleddownlink or forward link. It should be appreciated that (e/g)NodeBs ortheir functionalities may be implemented by using any node, host, serveror access point etc. entity suitable for such a usage.

A communications system typically comprises more than one (e/g)NodeB inwhich case the (e/g)NodeBs may also be configured to communicate withone another over links, wired or wireless, designed for the purpose.These links may be used for signalling purposes. The (e/g)NodeB is acomputing device configured to control the radio resources ofcommunication system it is coupled to. The NodeB may also be referred toas a base station, an access point or any other type of interfacingdevice including a relay station capable of operating in a wirelessenvironment. The (e/g)NodeB includes or is coupled to transceivers. Fromthe transceivers of the (e/g)NodeB, a connection is provided to anantenna unit that establishes bi-directional radio links to userdevices. The antenna unit may comprise a plurality of antennas orantenna elements. The (e/g)NodeB is further connected to core network110 (CN or next generation core NGC). Depending on the system, thecounterpart on the CN side can be a serving gateway (S-GW, routing andforwarding user data packets), packet data network gateway (P-GW), forproviding connectivity of user devices (UEs) to external packet datanetworks, or mobile management entity (MME), etc.

The user device (also called UE, user equipment, user terminal, terminaldevice, etc.) illustrates one type of an apparatus to which resources onthe air interface are allocated and assigned, and thus any featuredescribed herein with a user device may be implemented with acorresponding apparatus, such as a relay node. An example of such arelay node is a layer 3 relay (self-backhauling relay) towards the basestation.

The user device typically refers to a portable computing device thatincludes wireless mobile communication devices operating with or withouta subscriber identification module (SIM), including, but not limited to,the following types of devices: a mobile station (mobile phone),smartphone, personal digital assistant (PDA), handset, device using awireless modem (alarm or measurement device, etc.), laptop and/or touchscreen computer, tablet, game console, notebook, and multimedia device.It should be appreciated that a user device may also be a nearlyexclusive uplink only device, of which an example is a camera or videocamera loading images or video clips to a network. A user device mayalso be a device having capability to operate in Internet of Things(IoT) network which is a scenario in which objects are provided with theability to transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-humanor human-to-computer interaction. The user device may also utilizecloud. In some applications, a user device may comprise a small portabledevice with radio parts (such as a watch, earphones or eyeglasses) andthe computation is carried out in the cloud. The user device (or in someembodiments a layer 3 relay node) is configured to perform one or moreof user equipment functionalities. The user device may also be called asubscriber unit, mobile station, remote terminal, access terminal, userterminal or user equipment (UE) just to mention but a few names orapparatuses.

Various techniques described herein may also be applied to acyber-physical system (CPS) (a system of collaborating computationalelements controlling physical entities). CPS may enable theimplementation and exploitation of massive amounts of interconnected ICTdevices (sensors, actuators, processors microcontrollers, etc.) embeddedin physical objects at different locations. Mobile cyber physicalsystems, in which the physical system in question has inherent mobility,are a subcategory of cyber-physical systems. Examples of mobile physicalsystems include mobile robotics and electronics transported by humans oranimals.

Additionally, although the apparatuses have been depicted as singleentities, different units, processors and/or memory units (not all shownin FIG. 1) may be implemented.

5G enables using multiple input—multiple output (MIMO) antennas, manymore base stations or nodes than the LTE (a so-called small cellconcept), including macro sites operating in co-operation with smallerstations and employing a variety of radio technologies depending onservice needs, use cases and/or spectrum available. 5G mobilecommunications supports a wide range of use cases and relatedapplications including video streaming, augmented reality, differentways of data sharing and various forms of machine type applications(such as (massive) machine-type communications (mMTC), includingvehicular safety, different sensors and real-time control. 5G isexpected to have multiple radio interfaces, namely below 6 GHz, cmWaveand mmWave, and also being integradable with existing legacy radioaccess technologies, such as the LTE. Integration with the LTE may beimplemented, at least in the early phase, as a system, where macrocoverage is provided by the LTE and 5G radio interface access comes fromsmall cells by aggregation to the LTE. In other words, 5G is planned tosupport both inter-RAT operability (such as LTE-5G) and inter-RIoperability (inter-radio interface operability, such as below 6GHz-cmWave, below 6 GHz-cmWave-mmWave). One of the concepts consideredto be used in 5G networks is network slicing in which multipleindependent and dedicated virtual sub-networks (network instances) maybe created within the same infrastructure to run services that havedifferent requirements on latency, reliability, throughput and mobility.

The current architecture in LTE networks is fully distributed in theradio and fully centralized in the core network. The low latencyapplications and services in 5G require to bring the content close tothe radio which leads to local break out and multi-access edge computing(MEC). 5G enables analytics and knowledge generation to occur at thesource of the data. This approach requires leveraging resources that maynot be continuously connected to a network such as laptops, smartphones,tablets and sensors. MEC provides a distributed computing environmentfor application and service hosting. It also has the ability to storeand process content in close proximity to cellular subscribers forfaster response time. Edge computing covers a wide range of technologiessuch as wireless sensor networks, mobile data acquisition, mobilesignature analysis, cooperative distributed peer-to-peer ad hocnetworking and processing also classifiable as local cloud/fog computingand grid/mesh computing, dew computing, mobile edge computing, cloudlet,distributed data storage and retrieval, autonomic self-healing networks,remote cloud services, augmented and virtual reality, data caching,Internet of Things (massive connectivity and/or latency critical),critical communications (autonomous vehicles, traffic safety, real-timeanalytics, time-critical control, healthcare applications).

The communication system is also able to communicate with othernetworks, such as a public switched telephone network or the Internet112, or utilise services provided by them. The communication network mayalso be able to support the usage of cloud services, for example atleast part of core network operations may be carried out as a cloudservice (this is depicted in FIG. 1 by “cloud” 114). The communicationsystem may also comprise a central control entity, or a like, providingfacilities for networks of different operators to cooperate for examplein spectrum sharing.

Edge cloud may be brought into radio access network (RAN) by utilizingnetwork function virtualization (NVF) and software defined networking(SDN). Using edge cloud may mean access node operations to be carriedout, at least partly, in a server, host or node operationally coupled toa remote radio head or base station comprising radio parts. It is alsopossible that node operations will be distributed among a plurality ofservers, nodes or hosts. Application of cloudRAN architecture enablesRAN real time functions being carried out at the RAN side (in adistributed unit, DU 104) and non-real time functions being carried outin a centralized manner (in a centralized unit, CU 108).

It should also be understood that the distribution of labour betweencore network operations and base station operations may differ from thatof the LTE or even be non-existent. Some other technology advancementsprobably to be used are Big Data and all-IP, which may change the waynetworks are being constructed and managed. 5G (or new radio, NR)networks are being designed to support multiple hierarchies, where MECservers can be placed between the core and the base station or nodeB(gNB). It should be appreciated that MEC can be applied in 4G networksas well.

5G may also utilize satellite communication to enhance or complement thecoverage of 5G service, for example by providing backhauling. Possibleuse cases are providing service continuity for machine-to-machine (M2M)or Internet of Things (IoT) devices or for passengers on board ofvehicles, or ensuring service availability for critical communications,and future railway/maritime/aeronautical communications. Satellitecommunication may utilise geostationary earth orbit (GEO) satellitesystems, but also low earth orbit (LEO) satellite systems, in particularmega-constellations (systems in which hundreds of (nano)satellites aredeployed). Each satellite 106 in the mega-constellation may coverseveral satellite-enabled network entities that create on-ground cells.The on-ground cells may be created through an on-ground relay node 104or by a gNB located on-ground or in a satellite.

It is obvious for a person skilled in the art that the depicted systemis only an example of a part of a radio access system and in practice,the system may comprise a plurality of (e/g)NodeBs, the user device mayhave an access to a plurality of radio cells and the system may comprisealso other apparatuses, such as physical layer relay nodes or othernetwork elements, etc. At least one of the (e/g)NodeBs or may be aHome(e/g)nodeB. Additionally, in a geographical area of a radiocommunication system a plurality of different kinds of radio cells aswell as a plurality of radio cells may be provided. Radio cells may bemacro cells (or umbrella cells) which are large cells, usually having adiameter of up to tens of kilometers, or smaller cells such as micro-,femto- or picocells. The (e/g)NodeBs of FIG. 1 may provide any kind ofthese cells. A cellular radio system may be implemented as a multilayernetwork including several kinds of cells. Typically, in multilayernetworks, one access node provides one kind of a cell or cells, and thusa plurality of (e/g)NodeBs are required to provide such a networkstructure.

For fulfilling the need for improving the deployment and performance ofcommunication systems, the concept of “plug-and-play” (e/g)NodeBs hasbeen introduced. Typically, a network which is able to use“plug-and-play” (e/g)Node Bs, includes, in addition to Home (e/g)NodeBs(H(e/g)nodeBs), a home node B gateway, or HNB-GW (not shown in FIG. 1).A HNB Gateway (HNB-GW), which is typically installed within anoperator's network may aggregate traffic from a large number of HNBsback to a core network.

Currently a tremendous number of smart devices and objects are embeddedwith sensors and processors, enabling them to sense real-timeinformation from the environment and reacting accordingly. IoT devices,such as smart vehicles (e.g. smart cars), vehicle sensor(s), wearabledevices, different type of sensors, industrial and utility componentsmay be utilized in, for example, the system described in FIG. 1 or asimilar system. IoT has become an important driving force for theevolution of the communication network technology, such as 5G.Furthermore, technologies or concepts such as Vehicle to Everything(V2X) and Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) communications may further increasetraffic load in the present and future systems (e.g. system of FIG. 1).Therefore, in general, 5G cellular network may have higher capacityrequirements, in the dimensions such as user experienced data rate,traffic volume density, peak data rate, connection density, end to endlatency and mobility. All these requirements provide more possibilitiesfor various use cases to build a smarter world. However, the futuregeneration network will face many dynamic and diversified needs, thenetwork itself need to improve flexibility and smartness as well.

Smart may mean that the network may learn from the past and prepare fornew but similar cases. Instead of manually inputting and preparing allthe parameters needed for various cases which concerns thousands or moreparameters, the network may automatically make the best adjustmentitself. Besides, by learning from the past, and combining various typesof data, network may know how the resources are used and can designbetter scheduling, decision and resource allocation mechanisms. Allthese processing target to the higher efficient for the networkoperation, better Quality of Experience (QoE) for the end users, andmore profits for the service providers and network operators.

Accurate content pushing service may be enable the service providers topush the right content to the right users which is also known asintelligent content pushing or personalized content pushing. One exampleimplementation of the content pushing service may be V2X contentpushing. For example, smart vehicles may comprise multiple sensorsequipped in one vehicle to collect the vehicle conditions andsurrounding environment information. It is possible that all of thesesensors in the vehicle may connect to the network and interact the datainformation with vehicle service center to complete designed services.For example, there may be a need to update or upgrade firmware and/orsoftware of the sensors. For example, the update or upgrade (hereinafterupgrade) may be provide the sensor a new feature or bug correction. Bothmay improve safety of traffic, for example. As there can be a lotvehicles each comprising one or more sensors, it may be beneficial toprovide solutions that enable massive amount of data to be pushed to thesensors at proper time and at proper place via the communication network(e.g. network of FIG. 1). There are some characteristics for this typeof data transmission service to the communication network such as:

-   -   The number of target audience, i.e. sensors, will be relatively        large.    -   The data transmission volume may be quite high.    -   Due to the vehicle mobility the target audience (i.e. the        sensors) would also be mobile.    -   The data for an upgrade may be the same for a group of target        audience.    -   The completion time of the upgrade package data transmission        would be a definite time such as a deadline time.    -   In general, it would be the wireless transmission between the        target audience in the vehicle and the network. For example, a        vehicle service center may provide the upgrade to be transmitted        by one or more network nodes to the plurality of sensors.

Furthermore, from the content and user perspective such a service may bean accurate content pushing service in which target users receivecontents data at a definite time. This is content specific and usercentric. That may mean that different instance of this service wouldhave the different requirements on the content, user and time. Forvehicle sensors firmware/software upgrading use case, different brandsof automobile companies may launch different upgrading services at thedifferent time for different models of cars.

From the viewpoint of communication network, the problem may thus be howto design an enhanced or optimized transmission solution to transfer thedata to these target users in an effective manner.

Considering that in general the number of sensors or vehicles that mayneed to be upgraded will be larger, one solution is multicasttransmission. However, currently in communication network such as 4GLTE, the multicast service is simply supported as a Multimedia BroadcastMulticast Service (MBMS) service with some pre-configured fixed mode.The transmission region, i.e Multicast Broadcast Single FrequencyNetwork (MBSFN) area is relatively fixed. It is decided by the servicearea and network node capabilities. However, due to the nature mobilityproperties of automobiles, the distribution of users in this upgradebusiness may be quite dynamic. Therefore, it may be that all of thetarget devices are not located within any of a plurality of MBSFN areas.Therefore, previous simple and single multicast transmission methodwithout considering the user's mobility pattern and/or trajectory andother network node and/or user profile information may cause invalid(e.g. old data) data sending in some areas. It is also possible thatsome users are never inside said MBSFN area(s), and thus cannot receivethe transmitted data. Such situation could cause potential problems intraffic safety, for example.

Therefore, there is proposed a hybrid multicast-unicast solution whichmay be used to provide an enhanced content pushing service for terminaldevices, such as vehicle sensors and other vehicle devices. Multicastmay be understood as a transmission from one entity to a plurality ofentities (but not necessarily to all entities in the area as inbroadcast) whereas unicast may be a transmission one entity to another.These terms, individually, are known by the skilled person.

FIG. 2 illustrates a flow diagram according to an embodiment. Referringto FIG. 2, a method in a network element of a wireless communicationnetwork is provided, the method comprising: receiving a service requestfrom a service provider (block 202); initiating determination of atransmission scheme for the service request (block 204); obtainingmulticast capability information on a plurality of terminal devices andnetwork nodes (block 206); obtaining distribution information on theplurality of terminal devices (block 208); obtaining traffic loadinformation on the network nodes (block 209); based on the multicastcapability information, the distribution information, and the trafficload information, determining the transmission scheme for the servicerequest, the transmission scheme including at least one unicasttransmission and at least one multicast transmission (block 210); andindicating one or more unicast transmitting entities about the at leastone unicast transmissions and indicating one or more multicasttransmitting entities about the at least one multicast transmissions(block 212).

The network element discussed with respect to FIG. 2 may be, forexample, a network node or comprised in a network node (e.g. networknode 104) or in some other network entity. In one example embodiment,the network element may be a Big Data Process Function Entity (BDPFE).It is noted that such network element may be a virtual network function(VNF) in some implementations. This could mean that functionalities ofthe BDPFE may be shared between different physical entities of thecommunication system. Said method may be applicable in the system ofFIG. 1, for example.

In an embodiment, the distribution information comprises trajectoryinformation on the plurality of terminal devices. For example, thetrajectory information may indicate trajectories of the terminaldevices, such as predicted trajectories and/or predicted futurelocation(s). According to some example embodiments, the trajectoryinformation may indicate and/or comprise mobility prediction informationon the plurality of terminal devices. Essentially, such information mayindicate or try to estimate location(s), trajectory, and/or velocity/orspeed of the terminal devices. This may help the BDPFE 300 indetermining the transmission scheme based on, for example, the futurelocations, traffic load information and capability information.

The terminal devices discussed with respect to FIG. 2 may be, forexample, sensor devices such as devices 100, 102. Therefore, forexample, some devices 100, 102 may share same trajectories (i.e.comprised in the same vehicle) or have different trajectories.Trajectory information may indicate, for example, predicted trajectoriesof the terminal devices. In an embodiment, the plurality of terminaldevices comprises vehicle sensor devices, such as devices 100, 102.

As noted one use case for such content pushing may be the firmware orsoftware upgrade. Therefore, in an embodiment, the service request is afirmware updating request or a software updating request. Thus, theservice may be requested regarding a firmware or software update thatneeds to be pushed to the terminal devices.

So, in general, the transmission scheme may comprise multiple unicastand multiple multicast transmission. Let us look at FIG. 3 indicating anembodiment. Referring to FIG. 3, the network element performing themethod of claim 2 is shown as BDPFE 300. BDPFE 300 is used as anexample, but the embodiments may be applicable to other network entitiesalso. In the situation of FIG. 3, the transmission scheme may comprisemulticast transmission in multicast areas 311 and 321, and unicasttransmissions 317, 333, 335.

Regarding the multicast transmissions, these may be performed by networknodes 310 and 320 in their respective multicast areas 311, 321. So,terminal devices 312, 314 and 322, 324, 326 may receive the transmission(e.g. the upgrade) as multicast transmission.

Regarding unicasts transmissions, terminal devices 316, 332, 334 may beupdated utilizing the unicast transmissions 317, 333, 335.

Both unicast and multicast transmissions may be for fulfilling the sameservice request e.g. in the case of FIG. 3. As noted above, thetransmission scheme may be determined at least on the basis of multicastcapability information and distribution information.

Firstly, multicast capability information may indicate multicastcapability of the terminal devices 312, 314, 316, 322, 324, 326, 332,334 and/or the network nodes 310, 320, 330. For example, in the exampleof FIG. 3, such capability information may indicate that network nodes310, 320 and/or their cells are multicast capable whereas network node330 may not be multicast capable. Further, such information may indicatethat at least devices 312, 314, 322, 324, 326 are multicast capable.Therefore, these devices may be served using multicast transmissions,and thus the BDPFE 300 may indicate to network nodes 310, 320 viaconnections 392, 394 the multicast transmissions. However, as device 316may not be multicast capable, the network node 310 may also need toperform unicast transmission 317 to the device 316. The unicasttransmission may also be indicated by the BDPFE 300 to the network node310. Even further, as network node 330 may not be multicast capable, theBDPFE 300 may indicate or request (e.g. via connection 396) the networknode 330 to perform the unicast transmissions 333, 335 to the devices332, 334. It is noted that devices 332, 334 may or may not be multicastcapable.

So, as indicated, the BDPFE 300 may indicate the different multicast andunicast transmission regarding the same service request (e.g. upgraderequest) to the network nodes 310, 320, 330. It is possible that thereis one or more network nodes 310, 320, 330 to which the indication ismade. The indication may be understood as an indication or request toperform the transmission according to the transmission scheme determinedby the BDPFE 300.

Furthermore, in addition to the capability information, thedetermination may be based on distribution information on the terminaldevices 312, 314, 316, 322, 324, 326, 332, 334. That is, thedistribution information may comprise at least location of the terminaldevices 312, 314, 316, 322, 324, 326, 332, 334. Also, the BDPFE 300 mayutilize location data on the network nodes 310, 320 and their respectivemulticast areas 311, 321.

In an embodiment, the distribution information indicates trajectories ofthe terminal devices 312, 314, 316, 322, 324, 326, 332, 334. Forexample, the trajectories may be predicted trajectories of the terminaldevices.

The terminal devices 312, 314, 316, 322, 324, 326, 332, 334 may be, forexample, sensor devices and/or comprise one or more sensors. Forexample, the terminal devices may be comprised in one or more vehiclesand may thus be, for example, vehicle sensors. That said, each vehiclemay comprise one or more sensors.

So, for example, even if a terminal device would be within a multicastarea, but is expected to move outside the area e.g. within a certaintime limit, the BDPFE 300 may indicate the respective network node toperform unicast transmission to that terminal device regarding theservice request. For example, if device 316 is multicast capable, but ismoving away from area 311 e.g. so that the multicast transmission wouldnot reach the device 316, the BDPFE 300 may determine the transmissionscheme so that the network node 310 performs the unicast transmission317 to the device 316.

In an embodiment, the distribution information comprises locationinformation on the plurality of terminal devices. Thus, the currentand/or future predicted locations of the terminal devices may be known.

Referring still to FIG. 3, according to an embodiment, one or more ofthe multicast areas 311, 321 may be associated with one or more networknodes. Example of this is given with respect to multicast area 321 thatmay be served by network nodes 320 and 390 (it may also be connected toBDPFE 300 although not shown in the Figure). The network nodes 320, 390may jointly participate in the same multicast transmission. Hence, it isnoted that the same multicast transmission may be performed by aplurality of network nodes. This may, for example, improve cell edgeperformance for the multicast transmission. As noted, the multicastareas may be MBSFN areas as defined in 3GPP LTE specifications. Similaror same structure may be utilized in future networks, such as 5Gnetworks. It is also noted that the multicast area 311 may be associatedwith more than one network node although such is not shown in theFigure. However, only one network node may also suffice.

According to an embodiment, the network element performing the methodshown in FIG. 2 (e.g. BDPFE 300) utilizes Big Data and/or artificialintelligence in determining the transmission scheme. This may mean thatone or more learning algorithms are utilized in determining thetransmission scheme. For example, such learning algorithms may compriseutilizing neural network function(s) or similar learningfunctionalities. Some examples are given in FIG. 3 showing a UnifiedData Repository (UDR) 302, an Artificial Intelligent Engine (AIE) 304and an Artificial Intelligent Actuator (AIA) 306. One or all of thedescribed modules 302, 304, 306 may be used. Further, there can be oneor more of each of the modules 302, 304, 306. So, the optimized hybridmulticast-unicast transmission solution may comprise determination of atransmission scheme that utilizes Big Data analysis to determine themulticast group and region, and further utilizes unicast transmissionsas a supplement in the transmission scheme. Multidimensional,cross-layer, historical and predicative information can be used tooptimize the network processing through the Big Data and artificialintelligence methods.

The BDPFE may have an interface to the current network elements (e.g.elements shown in FIG. 1 and/or in FIG. 4) to collect information and toperform the Big Data analysis. This can make the current network moreintelligent to deal with the service requests. As noted above, accordingto an embodiment, the BDPFE comprises three components: UDR 302, AIE 304and AIA 306, which deal with data storage, data analysis and networkexecution decision arrangement respectively. These three components maybe designed loosely coupled, and connected with each other throughservice-like interfaces. BDPFE is flexible to modify and can adapt tochanges in the communication network.

UDR 302 may be part of 5G architecture. UDR 302 may focus on staticinformation and may collect data related to subscriber information,policy and network functions (NF). UDR may be a heterogeneous dataaccess point which collects, cleans (e.g. processes and removesredundant data) and stores different types of data from network. Thedata it gathers may relate to users, services, networks and externalinformation (e.g. environment, social). UDR may provide interfaces thatallows NF to push data for their storage, as well as to pull data fromthose NF by the UDR 302 itself.

AIE 304 may be an intelligent middleware that may contain both basicArtificial Intelligent (AI) modules and specific modules based onrequired tasks, such as to provide services related to analyzing,predicting, classifying, detecting anomalies and reasoning. It may beflexible to extend and modules can exchange information easily.Furthermore, it may be a case-free tool which can be used by differentNFs. It may communicatively connect to both the UDR 302 and AIA 306.

AIA 306 may be a connector between the network and data layer. The AIA306 may translate network requests and selects relative AIE modules forthe task. It may also receive results from AIE and provide assistedinformation for network to arrange resources and to make strategicdecisions. It may provide interfaces and services for NFs to performrequest, and may also have a specific interfaces to interact directlywith a Session Management Function (SMF) and Radio Access Network (RAN).

Let us then consider an example of how the BDPFE 300 may work. AIA 306may receive a service request (e.g. update request regarding software orfirmware) from the communication network (e.g. some NF of thecommunication network) and translate the service request into AIE 304understandable request. Afterwards, the AIE 304 may request UDR 302 toobtain necessary data such as a capability information and/ordistribution information. Further, the AIE 304 may obtain the data fromthe UDR 302, process it and transmit the data to the AIA 306 to help theAIA 306 in its decision making process (i.e. determining thetransmission scheme based on the service request and said informationobtained from the UDR 302).

As we noted earlier, the BDPFE 300 may utilize capability information,traffic load information, and distribution information in determiningthe transmission scheme for the service request. Moreover, theinformation based on which the transmission scheme is determined maycomprise service requirement information (e.g. service identifierinformation, target user information and/or service time requestinformation), network node profile information (e.g. capabilityinformation, coverage information, and/or traffic load information),and/or user profile information (e.g. capability information and/ormobility patter information which may be similar or same as distributioninformation). In general, information about the required service,capability information (both the network node and terminal devices),network node coverage and traffic load information, and terminal devicelocation and trajectory information may be used in determining thetransmission scheme. However, in some cases not all of the describedinformation is needed, but may improve the determination accuracy.

The described information and/or data may be continuously collected andstored in UDR 302 from other network elements. The AIE 304 maycontinuously process data to obtain and update user profiles (e.g.mobility pattern or distribution). So the Big Data analysis may beperformed in AIE 304, wherein the Big Data analysis may comprisetrajectory prediction and/or network load prediction to name a fewexamples.

In an embodiment, the BDPFE 300 continuously collects and stores thecapability information and distribution information; updates userprofiles of the terminal devices in a database based on the collectedinformation; and utilizes the user profiles in determining thetransmission scheme.

After the service request is received from the network by the AIA 306,the AIA 306 may begin to implement the transmission scheme determinationprocedure to ensure the successful transmission of the data related tothe service request.

So, the BDPFE 300 may utilize distribution information on the terminaldevices in determining whether the terminal devices can be provided theservice via multicast transmission. The BDPFE 300 may further utilizeinformation on the multicast regions in the determination. As disclosedabove, the distribution information may include trajectory or mobilitytrajectory information on the terminal devices. The predictedtrajectories may be obtained via the Big Data analysis. Further, unicasttransmission(s) can be used if multicast is not possible for aparticular terminal device(s).

Moreover, the same service request may comprise transmissions in aplurality of multicast areas and one or more unicast transmission. Forexample, network node coverage and distribution information on theterminal devices may be used to determine the area(s).

According to an embodiment, the method comprises causing the networknode to apply multicast transmission in a cell provided by the networknode if the number of terminal devices in the cell exceeds a threshold,otherwise causing the network node to apply one or more unicasttransmission. Basically, the BDPFE 300 may determine the transmissionscheme such that multicast transmission is performed if the number ofterminal devices in the multicast area (e.g. cell area) exceeds thethreshold. For example, if there is only one terminal device, unicasttransmission may be performed. However, the threshold number may be someother number than one (e.g. two, three, ten, or hundred). Utilizing saidthreshold, the BDPFE 300 may ensure that benefits are obtained from themulticast transmission or unicast transmissions.

In step 209 of FIG. 2, traffic load information may be obtained by theBDPFE 300 or similar entity. The traffic load information may indicatepredicted traffic load of the network nodes, such as network nodes 310,320, 330, 390. This may mean that the traffic load information indicatesfuture estimated traffic load in the multicast area(s) and/or cell(s).For example, the traffic load information may indicate how muchtransmission capability is used and/or left in a cell and/or in amulticast area. The traffic load information may be used, for example,to determine the transmission scheme. One example is given below.

According to an embodiment, the BDPFE 300 configures transmission timesof the at least one unicast transmission and/or at least one multicasttransmission based on the traffic load information on the network nodes.So, the actual transmission time of each multicast and/or unicasttransmission can be different according to traffic load information ofthe transmitting entity. For example, if a traffic load in a networknode is higher than in another network node, the former network node maybe configured to perform transmission later than the latter networknode. Later may mean, for example, after the traffic load decreasesbelow a certain threshold or is equal to said threshold. The BDPFE 300may additionally take into account time requirement of the servicerequest in determining the transmission times for the unicasttransmission(s) and/or multicast transmission(s). This way scarcenetwork resources may be used in a more effective manner.

In an embodiment, the transmission times of the unicast transmission andthe multicast transmission are different (i.e. they are configured to bedifferent by the BDPFE 300 and the transmission scheme may so indicate).This may be caused, for example, by different traffic load at theentities performing the transmission(s).

As noted above, the BDPFE 300 may indicate the determined transmissionscheme to the entities that perform the transmission(s). These entitiesmay comprise, for example, network nodes 310, 320, 330, 390. Thesenetwork nodes may be similar as network node 104 of FIG. 1, for example.Further, the BDPFE 300 may, in addition to the indication, determinewhether or not the data transmission(s) have been successful. If not,the BDPFE 300 may require a re-transmission of the data related to theservice request, for example.

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment showing connection of the BDPFE 300 toother network entities. Referring to FIG. 4, different network (e.g. 5Gnetwork) functions and their connectivity with each other are shown. Thenetwork functions may include: Network Slice Selection Function 402(NSSF), Authentication Server Function 404 (AUSF), Unified DataManagement 406 (UDM), Inter Working Function 408 (IWF), Access andMobility Management function 412 (AMF), Session Management function 414(SMF), Policy Control Function 416 (PCF), Application Function 418 (AF),and User plane function 424 (UPF). The network functions may compriseone or more of the described functions. Hence, not all are necessarilyrequired.

Further, the network may comprise Broadcast Multicast Service Center 410(BMSC), Radio Access Network 422 (RAN) (or simply Access Network), DataNetwork 426 (DN), one or more UEs 100, and the BDPFE 300 (or possiblymore than one BDPFE).

Different interfaces and connections are shown in FIG. 4 i.e.: N1between UE 100 and AMF 412; N2 between RAN 422 and AMF 412; and so on.These interfaces are known by the skilled person. However, totally newconnections between BDPFE 300 and IWF 408, BDPFE 300 and BMSC 410, BDPFE300 and PCF 416, BDPFE 300 and AF 418, and BDPFE 300 and RAN 422 areshown in the Figure. However, there can be other interfaces too.

To be more precise, the BDPFE 300 may have the interface with AF 418 forreceiving sensor firmware/software upgrading service request fromservice provider.

Interface with AMF 412, UDM 406 and RAN 422 may be used, by the BDPFE300, to collect needed data as mentioned above such as user subscriptioninformation (e.g. distribution information), capability information,and/or traffic load information.

Interface with IWF 408 may be used to obtain user group informationrelated to the received sensors firmware/software upgrading servicerequest. This may be the maximum users range required from the servicelevel that need to perform this upgrading.

Interface with BMSC 410 may be used for indicating the multicasttransmissions for the transmitting entities. Actually, the BMSC 410 maybe responsible for the multicast transmission(s), and further requestthe different network nodes to perform needed multicast transmissions.

Interface with PCF 416 may be used to indicate unicast transmissionssimilarly as with BMSC 410 and multicast transmissions. So, the PCF 416may be responsible for the unicast transmission(s), and further requestthe different network nodes to perform needed unicast transmissions.

Let us then look at FIG. 5 that illustrates a signal diagram accordingto an embodiment. Referring to FIG. 5, block 510 illustrates datacollecting process. That is, the BDPFE 300 (and more precisely the UDR302) may collect data from the network entities 502 (e.g. AMF 412, RAN422, and/or UDM 406). The data collecting process may be a continuousprocess. BDPFE 300 may configure the data collecting requirements forcorresponding network entities as required. Then the related networkentities may report the data according to the configuration. So theremay be a two-way interaction between BDPFE and corresponding networkentities 502. The collected data may comprise, for to example,capability information, coverage information, traffic load information,and/or any of the data indicated above or in FIG. 7. Based on thecollected data, the Big Data analysis may continuously perform the datamining to prepare some useful assistance information for the subsequentdecision making processing. For example, two types of profiles may begenerated, i.e. Network Node Profile and User Profile including themulticast supporting capability, user mobility prediction, traffic loadstatistic and prediction, and/or coverage information.

In block 512, the BDPFE 300 may receive a service request from the AF418.

In an embodiment, the BDPFE 300 may query, in block 514, group size fromthe IWF and receive a response in block 516 indicating the group size.This group size may indicate the maximum number of terminal devices orusers that can participate in the service request. In other words, howmany terminal devices can be updated or upgraded with the same servicerequest. Based on the group size information, the BDPFE 300 maydetermine the terminal devices that are to be updated or upgraded. So,the number of terminal devices that are to be updated or upgraded, usingthe described multicast and unicast hybrid transmission scheme, may notexceed the indicated maximum group size.

In block 518, the BDPFE 300 may perform the determination of thetransmission scheme as indicated above. Based on the determinedtransmission scheme, unicast and multicast transmission may be indicatedto PCF 416 and BMSC 410 respectively in blocks 520 and 522.

That is, according to the determined transmission scheme, multicastindication (block 522) is sent to BMSC 410 to initiate the subsequentmulticast data sending processing flow, and unicast indication (block520) is sent to PCF 416 to initiate the subsequent unicast processingflow. The indication(s) may be transmitted via Control Plane signaling,for example. The multicast indication signaling to BMSC 410 may compriseservice request information, multicast area information, and/ortransmission time information, to name a few example. The unicastindication signaling to PCF 416 may include the service requestinformation, network node information, user or terminal deviceinformation, and/or transmission time information. This information maybe used to guide subsequent transmission processes. In short, the BDPFE300 may indicate directly and/or via one or more entities (e.g. PCFand/BMSC) the network nodes about the multicast and/or unicasttransmissions. Therefore, the entity that should perform a transmissionis informed about the transmission. So, for example, a network node thatperforms unicast transmission may be indicated about that specificunicast transmissions, but not about other unicast transmission(s) andmulticast transmission(s).

Let us now look at FIG. 6 illustrating the transmission schemedetermination according to an embodiment. In block 602, the BDPFE 300may extract information from the service request (e.g. received in block512). This information may comprise, for example, information on theterminal devices that need to be served (e.g. updated) and/or timerequirement for the service request.

In block 604, user capability information may be obtained. For example,this may be based on the generated or updated user profiles (i.e. saiduser profiles may be associated with sensors). Based on the usercapability information, the terminal devices may be grouped into twocategories: multicast and non-multicast. Basically, for multicastterminal devices multicast may be possible and for non-multicastmulticast may not be possible. Non-multicast may refer to non-MBSFNcapable.

In block 606, if the terminal device is not multicast capable, theprocess may continue to block 608 regarding that terminal device.Otherwise, the process may continue to block 610.

In block 608, unicast transmission(s) for the non-multicast terminaldevice(s) may be configured and later indicated to the entitiesperforming the unicast transmission(s). Determining unicasttransmission(s) for each non-multicast terminal device may involveterminal device specific determination. Hence, for example, distributioninformation 622, coverage information 624, and/or traffic loadinformation 626 may be taken into account when determining unicasttransmission for a terminal device. The BDPFE 300 may use Big Dataanalysis results of user mobility prediction, base station coverageinformation and traffic load prediction results to determine unicastperforming network node, target terminal device, and the transmissiontime. The mobility prediction results and network node coverageinformation may help to select the proper network node for the users todo the unicast data sending. For the transmission time determination,the basic principle may be to choose the time when the network nodetraffic load is low to maximize the use of network resource. Thedeadline (i.e. time requirement) of the service request may need to besatisfied and taken into account when determining the transmission time.

In block 610, multicast capability of the network nodes may bedetermined. In block 612, if multicast is possible, the process maycontinue to block 614, and if not the process may continue to block 608.So, even if a terminal device is capable of multicast reception, thenetwork node or nodes able to transmit to said terminal device may notbe. In such case, unicast may still be needed. However, it is possiblethat two or more network nodes are able to transmit to the terminaldevice. In such case it may suffice that at least one of the networknodes is multicast capable for the process to continue to block 612.

In block 614, multicast transmission(s) are determined, by the BDPFE300, in cells and/or multicast areas based at least on the informationof block 622, 624, and/or 626. Multicast can be used for terminaldevices that are multicast capable and situated within at least onemulticast area. BDPFE 300 may use Big Data analysis results of usermobility prediction, base station coverage information and traffic loadprediction results to determine multicast performing network node, andthe transmission time. It may be possible to generate multiple multicastgroups for one service request. Each multicast group may be associatedwith a respective multicast area. The transmission time for eachmulticast group may be different. It is also possible that two or moremulticast groups are associated with the same multicast area. Forexample, two or more multicast transmission related to the same servicerequest may be performed within the same multicast area at differenttimes.

In an embodiment, the number of terminal devices in each multicast groupmay need to be higher than a threshold. That is, this way multicast maybring benefits compared to unicast transmissions.

Determining the scope and time of multicast is a dual optimizationproblem. That is, the distribution of users may be dynamic. So, thetransmission time may be determined on the premise of seeking as manyusers as possible in a multicast area. Hence, traffic load may actuallybe a secondary condition in the transmission time determination. Thisway multicast may provide most benefits as it is received as manyterminal devices as possible.

Furthermore, if some terminal device(s) cannot be mapped into anymulticast group, the BDPFE 300 may determine unicast transmission(s) forthese terminal device(s).

FIG. 7 illustrates collected data by the BDPFE 300 according to anembodiment. As noted in the Figure, UDR 302 may collect the data 700.The data 700 may comprise subscribed data 712, user mobility data 714,application/service data 722, policy data 724, network configurationdata 732, network flow data 734, and/or RAN data 736. Category 710 mayrefer to user data, category 720 may refer to service data and category730 may refer to network data.

Subscribed data 712 may be obtained, for example, from Home SubscriberServer (HSS) and/or UDM 406.

User mobility data 714 may be obtained, for example, from MobilityManagement Entity (MME) and/or AMF 412.

Application/service data 722 may be obtained, for example, from AF 418.

Policy data 724 may be obtained, for example, from Policy and ChargingRules Function (PCRF) and/or PCF 416.

Network configuration data 732 may be obtained, for example, fromNetwork Exposure Function (NEF).

Network flow data 734 may be obtained, for example, from RAN ArtificialIntelligent Data Actuator (RAIDA).

RAN data 734 may be obtained, for example, from RAIDA.

Based on the collected data, information such as distributioninformation and/or capability information may be determined by the BDPFE300.

The UDR 302 may collect and store data continuously. For example, thedata collection process may comprise collecting required data, such assession start time, user id, cell id, uplink data, and/or downlink data.Once the required data is registered between the network function andUDR, network function can use RESTful protocol to send data to the UDR302. The received data stream may be re-indexed and stored in UDR 302.

The received data, by the UDR, may be used by the AIE 304 to predict theuser mobility as well as traffic load information and help for the finalnetwork arrangement decision. The AIE may predict the traffic load ofnetwork nodes in order to increase efficiency of the network. In orderto predict the traffic load, AIE 304 may receive data from UDR 302. Forexample, the AIE 304 may comprise traffic modeling module that may usean Recurrent neural networks (RNN)/Long-short term memory (LSTM) model(or some other neural networks model) which may require input data, suchas time, time granularity, day, week, uplink (UL) data, downlink (DL)data, and/or flow window size.

Then, the data may be separated into training, validation, and test datasets (e.g. for 10 blocks data, the ratio can be 5:2:3), the data may berearranged into traffic matrix to fit the AI model.

An example algorithm is given in FIG. 8 showing the learning and/orprediction step 810 that provides input (e.g. data) to the UDR 302.Training and/or testing steps may be performed by the BDPFE 300 toobtain the test models 801. From the test models 801, the used model(i.e. data model) 800 may be selected, and based on the selected model800 the BDPFE 300 may predict results such as user mobility pattern.

In input layer 802, traffic data may be passed by the assigned slidingwindow (e.g. 10, from X1 to Xn, n being a positive integer number) tothe hidden layers 804. The hidden layer 804 may receive previous hiddenlayer data as an input and provide output (e.g. weighted output) to thenext hidden layer both vertical and horizontal. The evaluation metricsmay be for instance, a Mean Squared Error (MSE) function. Duringtraining period (see models 801), the best weights for each link may betried to be revealed in order to generate the final model (i.e. 800).Output is shown with reference sign 806.

For the input training data, which has been sliced by a window size Sw,given the sliced data X_(t) (x_(t),x_(t+1) . . . x_(t+sw)) and inputnode is a neuro node with:

i _(t) =f(w _(i) *X _(t) +b _(i))

where f is an activate function, f can be a standard logistic sigmoidfunction such as f(x)=1/(1+e−x), and w_(i) and b_(i) may be parametersto be learnt.

Since the traffic load model is a time series, the predicted output mayinfluence the sequenced data. This node C_(t) is linked both to C_(t-1)and i_(t), thus:

C _(t) =g _(t) *C _(t-1) k _(t) *i _(t),

Where g_(t) and k_(t) are the influence weights for t.

And output can be a fully connected linear: ot=σ(wo·Ct+bo).

Note that wi, wo, bi, bo may be weights, and bias parameters whichshould be learnt, the vector size may correspond to the input and outputvector size.

To choose the best model, different model types may be determined andtrained separately (see blocks 812 and 814 and the training models 801),afterwards, the final model (i.e. model 800) may be selected by the testprocess, which may later be used in the prediction of block 816.

For example, the following parameters may be used in determining themodels 801 and/or 800: Train data size, Test data size, Data timegranularity, Windows size of input data, Number of hidden layer, Numberof nodes in each layer, Network structure, Initial values for the nodesparameters (W,b), Activated function f, Loss function, Optimizationfunction, Learning rate, Training epoch, Number of models to generateand train, and/or Decision strategies for the final model.

FIG. 9 provides an apparatus 900 comprising a control circuitry (CTRL)910, such as at least one processor, and at least one memory 930including a computer program code (software) 932, wherein the at leastone memory and the computer program code (software) 932, are configured,with the at least one processor, to cause the respective apparatus 900to carry out any one of the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 8, or operationsthereof.

Referring to FIG. 9, the memory 930, may be implemented using anysuitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor based memorydevices, flash memory, magnetic memory devices and systems, opticalmemory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory. Thememory 830, 930 may comprise a database 934 for storing data. Forexample, the UDR 302 data may be stored in the database 934.

The apparatus 900 may further comprise radio interface (TRX) 920comprising hardware and/or software for realizing communicationconnectivity according to one or more communication protocols. The TRXmay provide the apparatus with communication capabilities to access theradio access network, for example. The TRX may comprise standardwell-known components such as an amplifier, filter, frequency-converter,(de)modulator, and encoder/decoder circuitries and one or more antennas.

The apparatus 900 may comprise user interface 940 comprising, forexample, at least one keypad, a microphone, a touch display, a display,a speaker, etc. The user interface 940 may be used to control therespective apparatus by a user of the apparatus 900.

In an embodiment, the apparatus 900 may be or be comprised in a networkelement, e.g. the network element performing the method described above(e.g. see FIG. 2). For example, the apparatus 900 may be or be comprisedin the BDPFE 300.

Referring to FIG. 9, the control circuitry 910 may comprise a servicerequest circuitry 912 configured to cause the apparatus 900 to performat least operations of block 202; a transmission scheme circuitry 914configured to cause the apparatus 900 to perform at least operations ofblock 204 and 210; an information obtaining circuitry 916 configured tocause the apparatus 900 to perform at least operations of block 206, 208and 209; and an indication circuitry 918 configured to cause theapparatus 900 to perform at least operations of block 212.

In an embodiment, at least some of the functionalities of the apparatus900 may be shared between two physically separate devices, forming oneoperational entity. Therefore, the apparatus 900 may be seen to depictthe operational entity comprising one or more physically separatedevices for executing at least some of the described processes. Thus,the apparatus 900 utilizing such shared architecture, may comprise aremote control unit (RCU), such as a host computer or a server computer,operatively coupled (e.g. via a wireless or wired network) to a remoteradio head (RRH), such as a Transmission Point (TRP), located in a basestation or network node 104, for example. In an embodiment, at leastsome of the described processes may be performed by the RCU. In anembodiment, the execution of at least some of the described processesmay be shared among the RRH and the RCU.

In an embodiment, the RCU may generate a virtual network through whichthe RCU communicates with the RRH. In general, virtual networking mayinvolve a process of combining hardware and software network resourcesand network functionality into a single, software-based administrativeentity, a virtual network. Network virtualization may involve platformvirtualization, often combined with resource virtualization. Networkvirtualization may be categorized as external virtual networking whichcombines many networks, or parts of networks, into the server computeror the host computer (i.e. to the RCU). External network virtualizationis targeted to optimized network sharing. Another category is internalvirtual networking which provides network-like functionality to thesoftware containers on a single system.

In an embodiment, the virtual network may provide flexible distributionof operations between the RRH and the RCU. In practice, any digitalsignal processing task may be performed in either the RRH or the RCU andthe boundary where the responsibility is shifted between the RRH and theRCU may be selected according to implementation.

According to an aspect there is provided a system comprising one or moreapparatuses 900 and one or more terminal devices, such as sensordevices. The system may further comprise one or more network nodes forperforming the multicast and unicast transmissions according to thetransmissions scheme determined by the apparatus(es) 900.

As used in this application, the term ‘circuitry’ refers to all of thefollowing: (a) hardware-only circuit implementations, such asimplementations in only analog and/or digital circuitry, and (b)combinations of circuits and software (and/or firmware), such as (asapplicable): (i) a combination of processor(s) or (ii) portions ofprocessor(s)/software including digital signal processor(s), software,and memory(ies) that work together to cause an apparatus to performvarious functions, and (c) circuits, such as a microprocessor(s) or aportion of a microprocessor(s), that require software or firmware foroperation, even if the software or firmware is not physically present.This definition of ‘circuitry’ applies to all uses of this term in thisapplication. As a further example, as used in this application, the term‘circuitry’ would also cover an implementation of merely a processor (ormultiple processors) or a portion of a processor and its (or their)accompanying software and/or firmware. The term ‘circuitry’ would alsocover, for example and if applicable to the particular element, abaseband integrated circuit or applications processor integrated circuitfor a mobile phone or a similar integrated circuit in a server, acellular network device, or another network device.

In an embodiment, at least some of the processes described in connectionwith FIGS. 1 to 8 may be carried out by an apparatus comprisingcorresponding means for carrying out at least some of the describedprocesses. Some example means for carrying out the processes may includeat least one of the following: detector, processor (including dual-coreand multiple-core processors), digital signal processor, controller,receiver, transmitter, encoder, decoder, memory, RAM, ROM, software,firmware, display, user interface, display circuitry, user interfacecircuitry, user interface software, display software, circuit, antenna,antenna circuitry, and circuitry. In an embodiment, the at least oneprocessor, the memory, and the computer program code form processingmeans or comprises one or more computer program code portions forcarrying out one or more operations according to any one of theembodiments of FIGS. 1 to 8 or operations thereof.

According to yet another embodiment, the apparatus carrying out theembodiments comprises a circuitry including at least one processor andat least one memory including computer program code. When activated, thecircuitry causes the apparatus to perform at least some of thefunctionalities according to any one of the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 8,or operations thereof.

The techniques and methods described herein may be implemented byvarious means. For example, these techniques may be implemented inhardware (one or more devices), firmware (one or more devices), software(one or more modules), or combinations thereof. For a hardwareimplementation, the apparatus(es) of embodiments may be implementedwithin one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs),digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices(DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gatearrays (FPGAs), processors, controllers, microcontrollers,microprocessors, other electronic units designed to perform thefunctions described herein, or a combination thereof. For firmware orsoftware, the implementation can be carried out through modules of atleast one chip set (e.g. procedures, functions, and so on) that performthe functions described herein. The software codes may be stored in amemory unit and executed by processors. The memory unit may beimplemented within the processor or externally to the processor. In thelatter case, it can be communicatively coupled to the processor viavarious means, as is known in the art. Additionally, the components ofthe systems described herein may be rearranged and/or complemented byadditional components in order to facilitate the achievements of thevarious aspects, etc., described with regard thereto, and they are notlimited to the precise configurations set forth in the given figures, aswill be appreciated by one skilled in the art.

Embodiments as described may also be carried out in the form of acomputer process defined by a computer program or portions thereof.Embodiments of the methods described in connection with FIGS. 1 to 8 maybe carried out by executing at least one portion of a computer programcomprising corresponding instructions. The computer program may be insource code form, object code form, or in some intermediate form, and itmay be stored in some sort of carrier, which may be any entity or devicecapable of carrying the program. For example, the computer program maybe stored on a computer program distribution medium readable by acomputer or a processor. The computer program medium may be, for examplebut not limited to, a record medium, computer memory, read-only memory,electrical carrier signal, telecommunications signal, and softwaredistribution package, for example. The computer program medium may be anon-transitory medium, for example. Coding of software for carrying outthe embodiments as shown and described is well within the scope of aperson of ordinary skill in the art. In an embodiment, acomputer-readable medium comprises said computer program.

Even though the invention has been described above with reference to anexample according to the accompanying drawings, it is clear that theinvention is not restricted thereto but can be modified in several wayswithin the scope of the appended claims. Therefore, all words andexpressions should be interpreted broadly and they are intended toillustrate, not to restrict, the embodiment. It will be obvious to aperson skilled in the art that, as technology advances, the inventiveconcept can be implemented in various ways. Further, it is clear to aperson skilled in the art that the described embodiments may, but arenot required to, be combined with other embodiments in various ways.

1.-26. (canceled)
 27. A method in a network element of a wirelesscommunication network, the method comprising: receiving a servicerequest from a service provider; initiating determination of atransmission scheme for the service request; obtaining multicastcapability information on a plurality of terminal devices and networknodes; obtaining distribution information on the plurality of terminaldevices; obtaining traffic load information on the network nodes; basedon the multicast capability information, the distribution information,and the traffic load information, determining the transmission schemefor the service request, the transmission scheme including at least oneunicast transmission and at least one multicast transmission; andindicating one or more unicast transmitting entities about the at leastone unicast transmissions and indicating one or more multicasttransmitting entities about the at least one multicast transmissions.28. The method of claim 27, wherein the service request is a firmwareupdating request or a software updating request.
 29. The method of claim27, wherein the plurality of terminal devices comprises vehicle sensordevices.
 30. The method of claim 27, further comprising: causing thenetwork node to apply multicast transmission in a cell provided by thenetwork node if the number of terminal devices in the cell exceeds athreshold, otherwise causing the network node to apply one or moreunicast transmission.
 31. The method of claim 27, further comprising:configuring transmission times of the at least one unicast transmissionand at least one multicast transmission based on traffic loadinformation.
 32. The method of claim 31, wherein transmission times of aunicast transmission and a multicast transmission are different.
 33. Themethod of claim 27, wherein the distribution information includestrajectory information on the plurality of terminal devices.
 34. Themethod of claim 27, wherein the method further comprises: continuouslycollecting and storing the capability information and distributioninformation; updating user profiles of the terminal devices in adatabase based on the collected information; and utilizing the userprofiles in determining the transmission scheme.
 35. An apparatuscomprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory comprising acomputer program code, wherein the at least one memory and the computerprogram code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause anetwork element of a wireless communication network at least to perform:receiving a service request from a service provider; initiatingdetermination of a transmission scheme for the service request;obtaining multicast capability information on a plurality of terminaldevices and network nodes; obtaining distribution information on theplurality of terminal devices; obtaining traffic load information on thenetwork nodes; based on the multicast capability information, thedistribution information, and the traffic load information, determiningthe transmission scheme for the service request, the transmission schemeincluding at least one unicast transmission and at least one multicasttransmission; and indicating one or more unicast transmitting entitiesabout the at least one unicast transmissions and indicating one or moremulticast transmitting entities about the at least one multicasttransmissions.
 36. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the servicerequest is a firmware updating request or a software updating request.37. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the plurality of terminal devicescomprises vehicle sensor devices.
 38. The apparatus of claim 35, whereinthe at least one memory and the computer program code are furtherconfigured to cause the network element to perform: causing the networknode to apply multicast transmission in a cell provided by the networknode if the number of terminal devices in the cell exceeds a threshold,otherwise causing the network node to apply one or more unicasttransmission.
 39. The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the at least onememory and the computer program code are further configured to cause thenetwork element to perform: configuring transmission times of the atleast one unicast transmission and at least one multicast transmissionbased on traffic load information.
 40. The apparatus of claim 39,wherein the transmission times of the unicast transmission and themulticast transmission are different.
 41. The apparatus of claim 35,wherein the distribution information includes trajectory information onthe plurality of terminal devices.
 42. The apparatus of claim 41,wherein the trajectory information comprises information on predictedtrajectories of the plurality of terminal devices.
 43. The apparatus ofclaim 35, wherein the distribution information further comprisespredicted location information on the plurality of terminal devices. 44.The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the at least one memory and thecomputer program code are further configured to cause the networkelement to perform: continuously collecting and storing the capabilityinformation and distribution information; updating user profiles of theterminal devices in a database based on the collected information; andutilizing the user profiles in determining the transmission scheme. 45.The apparatus of claim 35, wherein the network element utilizes one ormore machine learning algorithms in determining the transmission scheme.46. The apparatus of claim 45, wherein the one or more machine learningalgorithms utilize neural networks.
 47. A non-transitory computerreadable medium comprising program instructions stored thereon forcausing a network element of a wireless communication network at leastto perform: receiving a service request from a service provider;initiating determination of a transmission scheme for the servicerequest; obtaining multicast capability information on a plurality ofterminal devices and network nodes; obtaining distribution informationon the plurality of terminal devices; obtaining traffic load informationon the network nodes; based on the multicast capability information, thedistribution information, and the traffic load information, determiningthe transmission scheme for the service request, the transmission schemeincluding at least one unicast transmission and at least one multicasttransmission; and indicating one or more unicast transmitting entitiesabout the at least one unicast transmissions and indicating one or moremulticast transmitting entities about the at least one multicasttransmissions.